This.
. .this is going to get ugly.
Paul George is probably done for the year with a broken leg, and Stephenson is grazing in purpler pastures. Down their two greatest perimeter players on offense and defense, the Indiana Pacers are going to struggle in a large way.
Frank Vogel still has Roy Hibbert in the center, and George Hill will continue to be one of the NBA’s better defensive point guards. So getting stops still ought to be a power for Indy, but scoring is going to be rough.
Really rough.
Remember, this team ranked 22nd in offensive performance last year. After the All-Star fracture, just the Sixers’ scoring strike was less potent, per NBA.com. Taking away two of Indiana’s three leading scorers will make it almost impossible to have buckets at anything greater than a bottom-five pace.
Perhaps Chris Copeland will stretch the floor with his shooting. Maybe Hibbert will become a larger threat on the cube. David West could have yet another big year .
But even if all three of these things come to pass, it is difficult to say they’ll compensate for shedding George and Stephenson.
And in what may be the most frightening harbinger of an offensive catastrophe to emerge, Donald Sloan leads Indy in preseason points each game and is going to be the starter at point guard for up to three months while Hill’s left knee mends.
Oh dear.
Read more: totalsporty.com
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